Forum Use and Etiquette

What are the forums?

The developerWorks Lotus (formerly the Lotus Developer Domain/Notes.net) forums are a collection of active and archived user-to-user discussion forums focusing on Lotus products. Any visitor to developerWorks Lotus can read any of our forums, but if you want to post new topics in our active forums, or respond to existing topics, you need to register with us. Our archived forums remain on the site as read-only resources.

What is the policy for appropriate use of the forums?

Our forums are public, open, and unmoderated technical discussions for the Lotus product user community. We are providing this as a public service to our customers and partners. We welcome everyone, but specifically reserve the right to prohibit the following:

• Abusive, negative, or unproductive comments
• Rude or offensive language
• Excessive commercial promotion or recruiting efforts

We reserve the right to delete offensive messages and to restrict individual access if necessary. We will attempt to inform the offender before any action is taken.

Can I expect to receive product support here?

No. Our forums are intended to be a community with users helping other users. Although staff from IBM often participate in our forums, our development commitments keep us from having the time to give you a speedy response and/or the proper follow-up. For product support, please contact Lotus Customer Support.

What about broken links or outdated content?

The posts in our forums may be kept indefinitely. Over time, the content and links within the posts may become out-of-date or no longer available. IBM assumes no responsibility (and expressly disclaims responsibility) for the accuracy, completeness and maintenance of community contributed content, including but not limited to the access to or perpetual availability of any resources linked to or referenced in any posted information. Please also see the official IBM Terms of use.

What is the suggested forum etiquette?

We suggest practicing the following etiquette to help you and others make the most of our forums:

• Before posting your question, search the forum. Your question or comment may have already been discussed, answered, or resolved.
• Create a concise subject that adequately summarizes your topic. For example: "Ideas on customizing the discussion template?"
• Also, do not use words such as "Urgent" or "Important" in your subject line. This is a discussion, not a support forum.
• Do not use all capital letters, excessive question marks (?), or exclamation points (!) in your subject or content.
• Increase the likelihood of starting a discussion by providing details in your comment or question and by choosing a relevant category, release, and platform for your topic.
• Be patient. All the participants of this forum, including IBM developers, are using the forum and participating in discussions on their own time.
• Help others. The forum is a community and works best when people share information.
• Give feedback. If someone helps you by answering your question, try to add a follow-up response letting them know if it worked or not.
• Welcome newcomers. Do not chastise them for not reading the forum etiquette. Make them feel welcome in the community.

We can also recommend reading T W Duff's forum topics called Discussion Group Survival Guide and Search Techniques Survival Guide (although be aware this material is not maintained by our staff and may not be completely up-to-date.)

I posted a question, but no one answered. Should I continue to repost my question?

No. This is a community where our members help other members when they can, and the community does not appreciate it when people continue to repost their question.

As we suggest in our forum etiquette, please be patient. All the participants of this forum, including IBM developers, are using the forum and participating in discussions on their own time.

Also, if someone hasn't answered your question, it's probably because the question has already been answered elsewhere in the forum already, so you should search for an answer. Or, maybe your question doesn't include enough detail. As a registered member, you can always edit your topics to include more detail, rather than reposting the question.

Can I delete my topic once it's posted?

No. We don't allow deletion access to our members. If there is a topic that absolutely needs to be deleted, please contact the developerWorks Lotus team at dwlotus@us.ibm.com, and we will look into deleting your topic for you. You should note that you always have edit access to all your posts, so you can at least edit your own posts to remove whatever content you want.

Can I post passthru HTML?

No. Our forums are designed to strip out passthru HTML as a security measure.

Is it okay to send email directly to IBM developers?

No. Most of the IBM staff have been hardened to unsolicited Internet email and you should expect no response if you do send email. Do not take it personally--we just want to spend our time keeping Lotus software ahead of the competition. You benefit in the long run, and we appreciate your cooperation.

Can I access the forums with my Notes client?

Yes. Our forums are available in their native Notes format, and you can replicate them from our public Notes servers. For information on accessing the forums through native Notes, see "Viewing developerWorks Lotus in its native Notes format."

How do I give general feedback to the developerWorks Lotus team?

Comments on the forums or about any part of developerWorks Lotus are always welcome. You can email us at dwlotus@us.ibm.com. Thank you in advance for your support and comments!

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